Rage over a proposed map that’s projected to cost Texas Democrats up to five seats in the U.S. House during the next election has pushed party leaders at every level to promise an all-out, tit-for-tat redistricting war.
After Democrats spent years railing against partisan gerrymandering — framing the practice as a threat to democracy, and even leading efforts to force states to have bipartisan, independent commissions draw maps nationwide — many Democrats are now whole-heartedly supporting efforts to cook up their own partisan maps.
“All’s fair in love and war. That’s why I’m exploring with our leaders every option to redraw our state congressional lines as soon as possible,” Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York told reporters at a news conference Monday, as she sat alongside Texas legislators who fled the state the day prior to block Republicans from enacting their proposed map.